Chapter 81

Over the weekend, Zhang Ye spent most of his time sleeping, eating, and watching TV, not doing anything serious, mainly to adjust his state and relax his mind. Today was Monday, and Zhang Ye had originally planned to sleep until the sun was high in the sky, but someone didn't give him that chance.

It was only six in the morning.

Someone was knocking on the door.

Zhang Ye pretended not to hear; he was sleeping soundly.

Bang, bang, bang, the knocking turned into pounding. A moment later, there was a click, and the door was opened from the outside.

"There you are, at home!" It was Rao Aimin, "This naughty boy, always pretending not to hear!"

The landlady was holding a cute and pretty little girl, who was Chenchen. The little girl repeated what her aunt had called Zhang Ye, "Naughty boy."

Rao Aimin looked at her, "That's what I call him."

"I can call him too," Chenchen said expressionlessly.

"Call him uncle politely, don't be so rude," Rao Aimin educated her.

Chenchen responded with a low voice, "Naughty boy uncle, wake up."

Zhang Ye, who was sleeping comfortably in bed, was almost driven crazy by the two of them. He grabbed his hair in frustration, "What's the matter, Landlady?"

Rao Aimin said, "I'm about to go out. I had an appointment with the neighborhood committee and the police station a few days ago. I need to handle Chenchen's household registration, transferring it to my name, so I won't have time. But Chenchen's school has an open class this morning, and all parents must attend to listen to the children's Chinese class. There's also a writing activity for parents and children." She then pushed Chenchen's little hand forward, "I don't feel comfortable leaving the child with others. You, at least, are called a teacher. Take Chenchen to school and say you're her uncle or uncle."

Zhang Ye was dazed and immediately covered his head with the blanket, "I'm not going. I have things to do today. I need to submit resumes and..."

Rao Aimin kicked his foot, which was hanging out of the bed, without hesitation, "No nonsense, get up quickly! You have to go, whether you like it or not!"

Zhang Ye refused, "Absolutely not, I'm still sleepy."

Chenchen glanced at Zhang Ye and said in a mature tone, "A lazy donkey produces more manure when on the grind."

"Anyway, I'm leaving the child with you. I'm going." Rao Aimin turned to leave and added, "If you don't complete the task, just wait for me to settle the score with you! If you take good care of Chenchen this morning, I'll cook for you. I'll take care of your meals for the next few days!"

"That's not possible," Zhang Ye panicked, "Don't go, Landlady? Landlady?"

He sat up and shouted, but the person was already gone. Only little Chenchen was left, staring at him with her big, lifeless eyes and letting out a faint laugh, "Hehe."

This brat!

Can you stop saying "hehe" all the time?

The two of them looked at each other, and Zhang Ye simply turned over and continued sleeping. How could he take care of a child? He had never done it before.

One minute...

Five minutes...

Zhang Ye fell asleep again, soundly.

Suddenly, Chenchen's not-so-cute voice rang in his ear, "Zhang Ye! I'm hungry!" She pushed his shoulder with her little arm.

Zhang Ye pushed her hand away, "Stop messing around!"

Chenchen didn't listen and continued pushing him, "I'm hungry."

"Alright, I give up," Zhang Ye said, but he actually couldn't bear to let the child go hungry. He got up, still sleepy, and asked, "What do you want to eat?"

Chenchen said confidently, "Soy milk and fried dough sticks."

"1000

"Where am I going to get fried dough sticks? I only have instant noodles at home," Zhang Ye said.

Chenchen kept repeating, "Soy milk and fried dough sticks, soy milk and fried dough sticks, soy milk..."

Zhang Ye was exasperated, "Stop it, stop it, okay, okay, let me get dressed."

He finally understood that with this little brat around, he wouldn't be able to sleep. After washing up, he put on some clothes and took Chenchen downstairs to the breakfast stall across the street.

The boss lady greeted them with a smile, "What would you like?"

"Two soy milks and three fried dough sticks, thank you," Zhang Ye said politely.

"Sure thing, coming right up," the boss lady said, then looked at Chenchen with affection, "Is this your child? She's so pretty, she'll be a real beauty when she grows up."

Zhang Ye thought to himself, if I had such a mischievous child, I wouldn't be able to live!

...

At Hepingmen.

Beijing Experimental No. 2 Primary School.

There was a subway station nearby, but taking the subway was inconvenient as it required three transfers. So, Zhang Ye took the bus with Chenchen, the 70 route, which went directly there.

"Give me your hand," Zhang Ye said as they were about to cross the road.

Chenchen pouted, "You just ate fried dough sticks and didn't wash your hands."

Zhang Ye was annoyed, "You didn't wash your hands either. Hurry up, stop being so fussy." He was worried about crossing the road safely and had to hold Chenchen's hand.

Chenchen looked unwilling but still followed Zhang Ye to the school gate with her little backpack.

Today, there was indeed an open class for second graders. As soon as Zhang Ye entered the school, he saw many parents bringing their children, some with both parents.

"Chenchen!" someone called out.

A little boy ran up with his parents.

Chenchen glanced at him, "Dede?"

The little boy was eager, "You're here? Is this your dad?"

Chenchen replied coolly, "He's my uncle. My dad is much handsomer."

Dede's parents were amused by this. Dede's father extended his hand, "Hello."

Zhang Ye shook his hand, "Hello, you two came for the open class? Sigh, this school is getting more and more complicated."

Dede's mother said, "Who isn't? We both had work today, but we had to take leave. Kids come first, after all."

Dede was also talking to Chenchen.

"Did you prepare for today's essay?"

"No."

"Did you do the homework the teacher assigned over the weekend?"

"No."

"Ah, why didn't you do it? You'll be scolded by the teacher again. I'll let you copy mine, I've already written it."

"No need."

Dede kept trying to talk, but Chenchen was indifferent.

On the side, Zhang Ye finished chatting with Dede's parents. They took their child into the teaching building first. Zhang Ye turned back and held Chenchen's hand, saying, "Dede was talking to you. Why are you so cold? You'll have no friends if you keep this up."

Chenchen said calmly, "A girl should be a bit reserved."

Zhang Ye was taken aback, "Where did you learn that?"

Chenchen said, "My aunt said it."

"Stop learning from your aunt. Look at you, you're becoming just like her. Be cuter, it's more likable. Understand?" Zhang Ye taught her.

Chenchen replied, "I can't."

Fine, forget it. Zhang Ye took her to the second-grade classroom.

"Are you Dede's parent?"

"Yes, are you Qianqian's mother? My son often talks about Qianqian. The two kids get along well. Come over to my place sometime."

"Sure, let's keep in touch."

In the large classroom, many parents were introducing themselves to each other.

However, when Zhang Ye and Chenchen entered, there was little reaction. Only a few boys like Dede were willing to talk to Chenchen. Some girls even showed a look of rejection. Zhang Ye understood; indeed, little Chenchen had poor relationships at school.

"Hey, the teacher is here."

"Teacher Zhao Mei, hello, hello."

"Teacher Zhao, thank you for taking care of the children."

Zhang Ye asked Chenchen in a low voice, "Who is this?"

Chenchen said indifferently, "Zhao Mei, our homeroom teacher. She always criticizes me!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Teacher Zhao Mei noticed Chenchen and immediately looked at Zhang Ye, walking over quickly, "Are you Chenchen's parent?"

Zhang Ye replied, "Yes, I'm her uncle."

Teacher Zhao Mei's face fell, "Finally, I see someone. Uncle Chenchen, come with me." She led him to the end of the corridor.

Zhang Ye followed, "Teacher, what's the matter?"

Teacher Zhao Mei said, "How do you parents do this? Chenchen has been in school for a year now, and this is the first time I've seen her parents. I heard that when she first enrolled, she came to register by herself with the textbook fees. Last semester, I called her parents many times, but no one came. Do you even care about your child? I've been a teacher for many years, and I've never seen such negligent parents!"

Zhang Ye was stunned, "No one usually takes Chenchen to school?"

"No," Teacher Zhao Mei said angrily, "Are you asking me? I almost always greet the students at the school gate, and Chenchen always comes by herself!"

Zhang Ye finally understood why the landlady wanted to regain custody of Chenchen through legal means. It turned out that Chenchen's uncle and aunt didn't take care of her. He explained, "Teacher Zhao, it's like this. Chenchen's family situation is complicated. Her parents are no longer around, and she has been taken care of by her father's relatives, who haven't been very attentive. Now, her custody has been given to her aunt, who is like a sister to me. I promise this won't happen again. If there's anything, call her aunt or me. We'll be there whenever you need us." Learning about Chenchen's family situation, Zhang Ye felt a bit sorry for the little girl.

She's only seven or eight!

Going to school and registering by herself? She might even have to cook for herself! No wonder Chenchen is so mature for her age!

Teacher Zhao Mei was surprised, "Ah, is that so? Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know. No wonder she's always been so isolated in class."

Zhang Ye frowned, "Is someone bullying her?"

Teacher Zhao Mei smiled bitterly, "You're overthinking it. Who would dare bully Chenchen? I'd be lucky if she doesn't bully others. You, as parents, should know better than me about Chenchen's mouth. Many children in the class have been made to cry by her. Not just the children, even the new math teacher, who has only been here for a year, almost got sick from her. He took several days off!"

Zhang Ye was embarrassed, "Really?"

"Why not?" Teacher Zhao Mei said, both amused and exasperated, "Just a few days ago, when the new math teacher started teaching our class, he called on Chenchen to answer a question. She couldn't answer, and the teacher scolded her a bit. Chenchen then asked the teacher to prove one of the five major conjectures in mathematics, the 'Hua Conjecture.' Of course, the teacher couldn't prove it. This conjecture has been around for hundreds of years, and no mathematician has been able to prove it. Then Chenchen said, 'If you can't answer this question, why should I answer yours?' The Chinese teacher also had a similar experience. Once, Chenchen made her so angry that she left the classroom with her lesson plan!"

Zhang Ye coughed, "I'll talk to her. She's just being childish."

"Don't be too harsh. Take it slowly. I can see that she's a good child, just not easily trusting others. It might be related to her family situation," Teacher Zhao Mei understood and felt sorry for her. "Family has a huge impact on a child."

Zhang Ye said, "I'll trouble you to take care of her in the future."

"I'll do my best." She checked her watch, "The class is about to start. There are also some leaders from the education bureau here today. Chenchen's parent, find a seat."

"Got it." Back in the classroom, Zhang Ye looked at Chenchen sitting alone and felt a bit soft-hearted. He smoothed out her messy hair and straightened her school uniform collar, then found a chair and sat next to her like the other parents.